Terminal mobility management method and network device

ABSTRACT

A terminal mobility management method includes: sending, by a first network device, uplink signal configuration information for an idle terminal to a terminal; receiving, by the first network device, uplink signal measurement information sent by a first base station, wherein the uplink signal measurement information is obtained by measurement by the first base station upon receiving an uplink signal carrying a terminal identifier sent by the terminal based on the uplink signal configuration information; and configuring, by the first network device, mobility for the terminal based on the uplink signal measurement information, wherein the configuring mobility is configuring a serving base station for the terminal when a downlink service from the terminal arrives at a network side, such that the terminal receives paging information from the serving base station.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of International Application No.PCT/CN2016/098609, with an international filing date of Sep. 9, 2016,the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

Embodiments of the present application relate to the field ofcommunications, and in particular, relate to a terminal mobilitymanagement method and a network device.

BACKGROUND

By mobility management (MM), location information, security and serviceconnectivity and the like aspects of terminals are managed, such thatthe terminals maintain an optimal connection to a communication network,assurance is provided for application of various network services.

In conventional GSM/WCDMA/LTE, terminal mobility management is based ondownlink pilot signal/downlink reference signal measurements andmeasurement reporting by the terminals for base stations. For example,in an LTE system, mobility of an idle terminal is managed by theterminal by measuring a receive strength/quality of downlink referencesignals of the base station, and the terminal selects an suitable basestation to reside based on a base station selection or base stationreselection rule; and mobility of an active terminal is managed by theterminal by measuring a receive strength/quality of the downlinkreference signals of the base station and reporting a measurementresult, and a serving base station makes a decision for handover basedon a specific rule, and issues a handover instruction to the terminal tocomplete handover.

Ultra-dense networking is an important technical trend of 5G network.Density of the future 5G network would possibly be 10 times or evengreater over that of the conventional 4G network. This means thatrelative to a 4G system, future 5G terminals may possibly simultaneouslydetect 10 times or more base stations.

SUMMARY

An embodiment of the present application provides a terminal mobilitymanagement method. The method includes: sending, by a first networkdevice, uplink signal configuration information for an idle terminal toa terminal; receiving, by the first network device, uplink signalmeasurement information sent by a first base station, wherein the uplinksignal measurement information is obtained by measurement by the firstbase station upon receiving an uplink signal carrying a terminalidentifier sent by the terminal based on the uplink signal configurationinformation; and configuring, by the first network device, mobility forthe terminal based on the uplink signal measurement information, whereinthe configuring mobility is configuring a serving base station for theterminal when a downlink service from the terminal arrives at a networkside, such that the terminal receives paging information from theserving base station

Another embodiment of the present application provides a terminalmobility management method. The method includes: receiving, by a secondnetwork device, an uplink signal carrying a terminal identifier sentfrom a terminal based on uplink signal configuration information for anidle terminal sent by a first network device; obtaining, by a secondnetwork device, uplink signal measurement information by measurement;and sending, by the second network device, the uplink signal measurementinformation to the first network device, such that the first networkdevice configures mobility for the terminal based on the uplink signalmeasurement information, wherein the configuring mobility is configuringa serving base station for the terminal such that the terminal receivespaging information at the serving base station.

Still another embodiment of the present application provides a firstnetwork device. The device includes: at least one processor; and amemory communicably connected to the at least one processor; wherein thememory stores instructions executable by the at least one processor,wherein, the instructions, when being executed by the at least oneprocessor, cause the at least one processor to perform the steps of:sending uplink signal configuration information for an idle terminal toa terminal; receiving, by the first network device, uplink signalmeasurement information sent by a first base station, wherein the uplinksignal measurement information is obtained by measurement by the firstbase station upon receiving an uplink signal carrying a terminalidentifier sent by the terminal based on the uplink signal configurationinformation; and configuring, by the first network device, mobility forthe terminal based on the uplink signal measurement information, whereinthe configuring mobility is configuring a serving base station for theterminal when a downlink service from the terminal arrives at a networkside, such that the terminal receives paging information from theserving base station.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a clearer description of the technical solutions according to theembodiments of the present application, hereinafter brief description isgiven with reference to the accompanying drawings for illustrating theembodiments. Apparently, the accompanying drawings described hereinafteronly illustrate some embodiments of the present application, and otheraccompanying drawings may also be derived based on these accompanyingdrawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an application environment according toan embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 2 is a flowchart of a terminal mobility management method accordingto an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of base station distribution and mobilitymanagement in a communication network;

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of a terminal mobility management method accordingto a first embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of a train application scenario accordingto an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 6 is a flowchart of a terminal mobility management method accordingto a second embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 7 is a flowchart of a terminal mobility management method accordingto a third embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 8 is a block diagram of a first network device according to afourth embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 9 is a block diagram of a second network device according to afifth embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 10 is a block diagram of a terminal according to a sixth embodimentof the present application;

FIG. 11 is a block diagram of a first network device according to aseventh embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 12 is a block diagram of a second network device according to aneighth embodiment of the present application; and

FIG. 13 is a block diagram of a terminal according to a ninth embodimentof the present application.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

For clear description of objectives, technical solutions, and advantagesof the present application, the present application is further describedin detail below by reference to the embodiments and the accompanyingdrawings. It should be understood that the specific embodimentsdescribed herein are only intended to explain the present applicationinstead of limiting the present application.

Some devices in the embodiments of the present application are describedhereinafter.

Anchor base station (anchor BS) and mobility management server (MMS): Ifa base station having super long-range coverage or basic coverage isdeployed in a coverage region, the base station is generally defined asthe anchor base station, which may also be referred to as the mobilitymanagement server; and if no base station having super long-rangecoverage or basic coverage is deployed in the coverage area, a mobilitymanagement server may be deployed on a core network side to control aplurality of base stations in the coverage region thereof. The mobilitymanagement server may be located in a network element in the corenetwork or may be located in a network element in a wireless network.When a base station having super long-range coverage is deployed in aregion, the base station is generally used as an anchor for mobilitymanagement in this region, that is, a controller, i.e., the mobilitymanagement server. In addition, since the anchor is actually a basestation, the anchor is also referred to as an anchor base station. Whenall the base stations in a region almost have the same coverage rangeand no such base station having super long-range coverage is deployed(that is, no anchor base station is deployed), a mobility managementserver needs to be deployed to connect to various base stations in theregion and control various first base stations (interpretation will begiven hereinafter) to receive uplink signals from terminals andconfigure serving base stations for the terminals. First base station:The first base station is configured by the anchor base station and themobility management server based on a predetermined rule. The first basestation receives the uplink signals from the terminals, measures theuplink signals to obtain uplink signal measurement information, andsends the obtained uplink signal measurement information to the anchorbase station and the mobility management server.

Serving base station: The serving base stations are all base stationsconfigured by the anchor base station and the mobility management serverfor idle terminals to provide communication services for theseterminals.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an application environment according toan embodiment of the present application. As illustrated in FIG. 1, theembodiment of the present application may be applied to a mobilecommunication network to implement mobility management of a terminal 100by a first network device 200. The first network device 200 may be adevice in an anchor base station or a mobility management server, andthe first network device 200 is positioned within an entity basestation, wherein functions of a server are integrated in the firstnetwork device 200 and the first network device 200 acquires a signalfrom the terminal via an interface. The terminal 100 may be a smartphone or a mobile terminal having the mobile communication function. Asecond network device 300 may be a device in a first base station, andthe second network device 300 measures an uplink signal from theterminal 100 and sends uplink signal measurement information to thefirst network device 200.

Firstly, processes of the entire solutions according to the embodimentsof the present application are described in detail. FIG. 2 is aflowchart of a terminal mobility management method according to anembodiment of the present application. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram ofbase station distribution and mobility management in a communicationnetwork. As illustrated in FIG. 3, ultra-dense networking in the 5Gnetwork may enable a terminal to be capable of simultaneously detecting10 times or even more base stations relative to the 4G network. In FIG.3, A denotes a basically covered cell, and B to F denote small cellsproviding ultra-high bandwidths. A has a largest coverage, and is ananchor base station in a coverage of base stations. The anchor basestation is responsible for providing a mobility management service for aterminal based on uplink signal measurement information received fromthe terminal and reported by a plurality of base stations, andconfigures mobility for the terminal, for example, determining a servingbase station for the terminal and perform location tracking for theterminal.

As illustrated in FIG. 2, the method includes the following steps:

Step 101: An anchor base station (or a mobility management server) sendsuplink signal configuration information for an idle terminal to aterminal.

It should be noted that broadcast information of the anchor base stationinvolves a number of partitions. Some partitions are directed toterminals in all the states (an idle state, a quasi-active state and anactive state), some partitions are directed to the idle state, and somepartitions are directed to the quasi-active state or the active state.These partitions are probably sent by the anchor base station in thesame piece of broadcast information, and terminals in different statesparse their desired information in different partitions. Therefore, thebroadcast information sent by the anchor base station contains contentfor the idle terminal, for example, the uplink signal configurationinformation for the idle terminal.

Step 102: The terminal sends an uplink signal based on the uplink signalconfiguration information.

The uplink signal is sent by the terminal in the idle state where noservice is requested. After the idle terminal sends the uplink signalbased on the uplink signal configuration information, a first basestation receiving the uplink signal measures the uplink signal to obtainuplink signal measurement information. Upon obtaining the uplink signalmeasurement information, the first base station firstly stores theobtained uplink signal measurement information, such that the first basestation reports the information in the future when the terminal requestsa service.

Step 103: The first base station receives the uplink signal from theterminal, and obtains the uplink signal measurement information bymeasurement.

One or more first base stations may be deployed. The first base stationis pre-configured by the anchor base station based on a predeterminedrule. For example, the anchor base station selects some base stationsthat are capable of implementing seamless communication connectionwithin 5 kilometers to form the first base station. Alternatively, insome extreme occasions, only the anchor base station satisfies aselection condition of the first base station or the mobility managementserver only designates one first base station (a base station having anultra-far coverage, that is, the anchor base station) to measure theuplink signal.

Step 104: The first base station reports the uplink signal measurementinformation to the anchor base station.

Only the first base station storing the uplink signal measurementinformation carrying the terminal identifier sends the uplink signalmeasurement information of the terminal to the anchor base station. Thatis, only the first base station which measures the uplink signal of theterminal sends the uplink signal measurement information.

Step 105: The anchor base station reports an idle terminal identifierlist in the anchor base station to the core network.

Step 106: The core network receives a downlink service request, anddetermines the anchor base station in which the terminal resides basedon the terminal identifier.

Upon receiving the downlink service request with respect to theterminal, the core network may determine the anchor base station inwhich the terminal resides based on the terminal identifier.

Step 107: The core network sends paging information containing theterminal identifier to the determined anchor base station.

Step 108: The anchor base station determines a serving base station forthe terminal based on the uplink signal measurement information for theterminal reported by the first base station.

The anchor base station selects the serving base station based on aspecific rule. The terminal may be located in an overlapping coverageregion of a plurality of first base stations. It is possible that aplurality of first base stations are capable of receiving the uplinksignal from the terminal. However, there is only one optimal servingbase station. The serving base station may be determined based on thespecific rule.

Step 109: The anchor base station sends a service establish requestcontaining the terminal identifier to the determined serving basestation.

Step 110: The serving base station sends a service establish requestresponse to the anchor base station.

Step 111: The anchor base station sends the paging information to theterminal.

Step 112: The anchor base station sends a paging response to the corenetwork.

Step 113: The core network sends a downlink service to the serving basestation.

Step 114: The serving base station sends downlink data to the terminal.

As compared with the mobility management method based on downlink pilotsignal/downlink reference signal measurement in the related art, in theembodiment of the present application, base station reselection orhandover is not needed on the terminal side, the terminal only needs tosend the uplink signal, and the first network device in the anchor basestation or the mobility management server configures mobility for theterminal based on the uplink signal measurement information from thefirst base station and configures the candidate base station for theterminal. In this way, overhead and power consumption for the terminalto measure downlink signals from base stations inside the system andoutside the system, frequent base station reselection and handover isprevented, the terminal does not need to consider network coverage andload, and the first network device determines a serving base station forthe terminal. As such, the requirement of user-centered serviceprovisioning in the 5G network is accommodated, and the serving basestation is quickly assigned to the terminal when the terminal receives adownlink service request.

A first embodiment of the present application provides a terminalmobility management method. The method is applied to a network device inan anchor base station or a mobility management server. FIG. 4 is aflowchart of a terminal mobility management method according to a firstembodiment of the present application. As illustrated in FIG. 4, themethod includes the following steps:

Step 201: A first network device sends uplink signal configurationinformation for an idle terminal to a terminal.

The uplink signal is one or more of a reference signal, an anchor signaland a random access request signal. Core information of the referencesignal, the anchor signal and the random access request signal includesa sequence that is known by a sending end (the terminal) and a receivingend (the first base station), for the first base station to performenergy detection and/or channel estimation. The above signals may alsocarry additional information following the known sequence. For example,identifier information of the terminal may be added to the random accessrequest signal.

Step 202: The first network device receives uplink signal measurementinformation from a first base station, wherein the uplink signalmeasurement information is obtained by measurement by the first basestation upon receiving an uplink signal carrying a terminal identifiersent by the terminal based on the uplink signal configurationinformation.

Step 203: The first network device configures mobility for the terminalbased on the uplink signal measurement information, wherein theconfiguring mobility is configuring a serving base station for theterminal when a downlink service from the terminal arrives at a networkside such that the terminal receives paging information from the servingbase station.

In step 201, the first network device sends the uplink signalconfiguration information by the following steps:

The first network device configures a sending cycle or a type of atrigger event for an uplink signal of the idle terminal. The triggerevent indicates that a downlink reference signal strength or downlinkreference signal quality of a serving base station or an anchor basestation of the terminal is less than a first predetermined threshold, ora time interval of the terminal since previous sending of the uplinksignal exceeds a second predetermined threshold.

The first network device sends sending cycle configuration informationfor the uplink signal of the idle terminal or trigger event typeconfiguration information for the uplink signal of the idle terminal ora report instruction directed to the terminal.

Therefore, the terminal may send the uplink signal in one or more of thefollowing ways:

1. The terminal sends the uplink signal based on the sending cycleconfigured by the first network device for the uplink signal.

The sending cycle for the uplink signal may be a sending cyclepre-configured by the first network device for the uplink signal of theterminal based on a moving speed of the terminal. For example, when themoving speed of the terminal is high, the first network deviceconfigures a shorter sending cycle for the uplink signal; and on thecontrary, when the moving speed of the terminal is low, the firstnetwork device configures a longer sending cycle for the uplink signal.

2. The terminal sends the uplink signal when the trigger eventconfigured by the first network device is generated.

The trigger event indicates that the downlink reference signal strengthor downlink reference signal quality of the serving base station or theanchor base station of the terminal is less than the first predeterminedthreshold, or the time interval of the terminal since previous sendingof the uplink signal exceeds the second predetermined threshold. Thefirst predetermined threshold and the second predetermined thresholdmaybe defined based on the actual needs. When the downlink referencesignal strength or downlink reference signal quality of the serving basestation or the anchor base station of the terminal is less than thefirst predetermined threshold, it is likely that the terminal is locatedat an edge of the serving base station or the anchor base station orother factors are present. In this case, base station handover isneeded, and the terminal sends the uplink signal such that the firstnetwork device carries out mobility configuration such as base stationhandover or the like for the terminal. When the time interval of theterminal since previous sending of the uplink signal exceeds the secondpredetermined threshold, it indicates that it is a long time since basestation reselection or base station handover was carried out for theterminal. In this case, mobility configuration may need to be carriedout for the base station, such that the first network device selects amost suitable base station which provides services for the terminal.

3. The terminal sends the uplink signal when the first network deviceissues a report instruction to the terminal.

For example, when another terminal initiates a connection request to aterminal, the first network device may issue the report instruction tothe terminal to be connected. In this case, the terminal receives thereport instruction and sends the uplink signal, such that the firstnetwork device carries out mobility configuration such as base stationselection or the like for the terminal, and a communication requirementbetween the another terminal and the terminal is accommodated.

In addition, the first network device may also configure a resourcelocation for the idle terminal to send the uplink signal and sequenceinformation contained in the uplink signal, and then send resourcelocation configuration information for the idle terminal to send theuplink signal and sequence information configuration informationcontained in the uplink signal for the idle terminal to send the uplinksignal.

The sequence information contained in the uplink signal may be areference sequence, a special sequence, a random sequence, a knownsequence or the like. The sequence information is mainly used for theterminal identifier. For example, a 1024-byte sequence length representsa specific terminal.

The resource location for the idle terminal to send the uplink signaland sequence information contained in the uplink signal, and the sendingcycle for the uplink signal or the type of the trigger event for theuplink signal that are configured by the first network device are sentin broadcast information of the anchor base station. Nevertheless, theresource location for the idle terminal to send the uplink signal andsequence information contained in the uplink signal, and the sendingcycle for the uplink signal or the type of the trigger event for theuplink signal may also be sent in control information of the anchor basestation or at a specific resource location by an optimal service requestaccess base station.

Prior to step 201, the method may further include the following steps:

The first network device configures the first base station, such thatthe first base station obtains the uplink signal measurement informationby measurement upon receiving the uplink signal carrying the terminalidentifier from the terminal based on the uplink signal configurationinformation.

Upon receiving a service request carrying the terminal identifier fromthe terminal, the first network device sends a measurement informationreport instruction carrying the terminal identifier to the first basestation, such that the first base station sends the uplink signalmeasurement information.

The first network device may configure mobility for the terminal in oneor more of the following ways:

1. selecting a base station having a highest signal strength or highestsignal quality as the serving base station of the terminal based on theuplink signal measurement information; or

2. selecting a base station having a highest signal strength or havingsignal quality higher than a third predetermined threshold as theserving base station of the terminal based on the uplink signalmeasurement information; or

the third predetermined threshold may be defined according to the actualneeds; several qualified base stations may be selected as the servingbase stations for the terminal, instead of selecting one only basestation as the serving base station, such that more base station choicesare provided for communication of the terminal;

3. selecting a base station having a signal strength or signal qualityhigher than a fourth predetermined threshold and having lowest load asthe serving base station of the terminal based on the uplink signalmeasurement information and the load of the first base station.

The fourth predetermined threshold may be defined according to theactual needs. The base station may be selected further in combinationwith the load. For example, the base station having the signal strengthor signal quality higher than the fourth predetermined threshold andhaving the lowest load is provided for the terminal as the serving basestation. In this case, the base station may be selected as a target basestation.

The terminal may be in an idle state, an active state or a quasi-activestate. With respect to an idle terminal, the first network devicenotifies the configured candidate serving base station or serving basestation to the idle terminal, such that the idle terminal sends anuplink service request based on the candidate serving base station orthe serving base station; alternatively, the first network deviceconfigures paging information, and notifies the configured candidateserving base station or serving base station and the configured paginginformation to the idle terminal, wherein the paging informationincludes the terminal identifier, and the paging information is sent bythe anchor base station or the candidate serving base station or theserving base station. With respect to an active or quasi-activeterminal, the first network device notifies the configured serving basestation to the active or quasi-active terminal, such that the active orquasi-active terminal establishes a connection to the serving basestation.

Specifically, when the first network device configures mobility for theterminal, with respect to the idle terminal, the anchor base stationdetermines an optimal paging base station or paging region for theterminal (accurate paging is needed when a downlink service requestarrives) and/or an optimal service request access base station(initiated by an uplink service). The optimal paging base station orpaging region is determined by the anchor base station. When thedownlink service request arrives, the paging information containing theterminal identifier is sent in the optimal paging base station or pagingregion. The optimal service request access base station is determined bythe anchor base station, and is sent in the broadcast information or thecontrol information of the anchor base station or at the specificresource location by the optimal service request access base station.The terminal does not need base station reselection and measurement inthe idle state, and the location of the terminal may be determined bythe network side. When a service arrives, paging information or aservice request maybe accurately initiated, which greatly lowerscomplexity and power consumption of measurement of the terminal.

With respect to an active or quasi-active terminal, the anchor basestation determines a candidate serving base station or candidate servingbase station set, a serving base station or serving base station set,and a handover base station or handover base station set, and anidentifier of the candidate serving base station or an identifiersequence of the candidate serving base station set, an identifier of theserving base station or an identifier sequence of the serving basestation set, and an identifier of the handover base station or anidentifier sequence of the handover base station set corresponding tothe terminal are sent in the broadcast information or the controlinformation of the anchor base station or at a specific base station ora specific resource location by the mobility management server. Theterminal only needs to carry out downlink synchronization with thecandidate serving base station or candidate serving base station set andthe serving base station or serving base station set, and receive data,or carry out downlink synchronization for the handover base station orhandover base station set and initiates a handover request. As such,measurement of downlink local system and foreign system in the activestate is not needed, which greatly lowers complexity and powerconsumption of measurement of the terminal.

It should be noted that when the first network device carries outmobility configuration for the terminal, generally one candidate servingbase station is configured for the terminal. Nevertheless, a basestation group may also be configured for the terminal. When the terminalinitiates a service request, a base station is selected from the basestation group based on a predetermined rule to provide services for theterminal. Therefore, in some embodiments, the first network device mayalso pre-configure a serving base station set for the terminal based ona moving direction and a moving speed of the terminal. FIG. 5 is aschematic diagram of a train application scenario according to anembodiment of the present application. As illustrated in FIG. 5, in anexpressway or high-speed railway scenario, the terminal is in a movingstate, and a serving base station set may be pre-configured for theterminal based on a moving direction and a moving speed of the terminal.The moving direction and the moving speed may be carried by the terminalin the reference signal, the anchor signal and the random access requestsignal, or may be acquired the anchor base station or the mobilitymanagement server based on joint positioning and speed estimation forthe reference signal, the anchor signal and the random access requestsignal from the terminal by a plurality of base stations. Specifically,the moving direction and/or the moving speed of the terminal may beestimated based the uplink reference signal, the anchor signal and therandom access request signal from the terminal reported by the pluralityof base stations, or information of the moving direction and/or themoving speed of the terminal is carried in the reference signal, theanchor signal and the random access request signal from the terminal.The anchor base station or the mobility management server configures anoptimal paging base station or region sequence, and/or an optimalservice request access base station sequence for the terminal. When theterminal is moving: if a downlink service request arrives, the anchorbase station sends paging information containing the terminal identifierin the optimal paging base station or paging region; and if an uplinkservice request arrives, the terminal initiates a service request in anoptimal service request access base station. The above base stations arepre-configured accurately in a designated route, which greatly reducesan access or handover delay, and improves user experience.

The first network device identifies priorities of various base stationsin the serving base station set, such that the terminal selects toaccess a serving base station having a highest priority. Alternatively,the terminal randomly selects a quasi-serving base station or a servingbase station to access or a handover base station to hand over from theserving base station set or a handover base station set; or the terminalcarries out downlink reference signal measurement for the base stationsin the serving base station set or the handover base station set, andselects a quasi-serving base station or a serving base station having ahighest signal receive strength or highest downlink reference signalquality to access or selects a handover base station.

In the embodiment of the present application, when the terminal sends anuplink signal (that is, reporting), which base station receives theuplink signal and whether the receiving is interrupted with mobility ofthe terminal do not need to be considered. The terminal only needs toreport the information based on an instruction from the anchor basestation. The anchor base station receives a measurement result of thereported information by the first base station, and determines a servingbase station or serving base station set suitable for the terminal. Whena downlink service arrives, the anchor base station may determine whichbase station or which base stations issue a paging instruction.

A second embodiment of the present application provides a terminalmobility management method. The method is applied to a network device ina first base station. FIG. 6 is a flowchart of the terminal mobilitymanagement method according to the second embodiment of the presentapplication. As illustrated in FIG. 6, the method includes the followingsteps:

Step 301: A second network device receives an uplink signal carrying aterminal identifier sent from a terminal based on uplink signalconfiguration information for an idle terminal, and obtains uplinksignal measurement information by measurement.

Step 302: The second network device sends the uplink signal measurementinformation to the first network device, such that the first networkdevice configures mobility for the terminal based on the uplink signalmeasurement information, wherein the configuring mobility is configuringa serving base station for the terminal such that the terminal receivespaging information at the serving base station.

The second network device is a device in a first base station. The firstnetwork device is a device in an anchor base station or a mobilitymanagement server.

The uplink signal is one or more of a reference signal, an anchor signaland a random access request signal.

The first base station to which the second network device belongs isconfigured by the first network device. The first network deviceconfigures the first base station, such that the first network device inthe first base station receives uplink signal measurement informationobtained by measurement by the terminal after the terminal sends theuplink signal carrying the terminal identifier based on the uplinksignal configuration information.

Detailed practice and working principle of this embodiment may bereferenced to the description in the first embodiment of the presentapplication, which are thus not described herein any further.

A third embodiment of the present application provides a terminalmobility management method. The method is applied to a terminal. FIG. 7is a flowchart of the terminal mobility management method according tothe third embodiment of the present application. As illustrated in FIG.7, the method includes the following steps:

Step 401: A terminal sends an uplink signal carrying a terminalidentifier based on uplink signal configuration information for an idleterminal sent by a first network device, such that a first base stationobtains uplink signal measurement information by measurement uponreceiving the uplink signal, and the first network device receives theuplink signal measurement information from the first base station andconfigures mobility for the terminal based on the uplink measurementinformation, wherein the configuring mobility is configuring a servingbase station for the terminal when a downlink service arrives at anetwork side, such that the terminal receives paging information at theserving base station.

The first network device is a device in an anchor base station or amobility management server.

The uplink signal is one or more of a reference signal, an anchor signaland a random access request signal.

Detailed practice and working principle of this embodiment may bereferenced to the description in the first embodiment of the presentapplication, which are thus not described herein any further.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram of a first network device 200 according to afourth embodiment of the present application. The first network deviceis a device in an anchor base station or a mobility management server.As illustrated in FIG. 8, the first network device 200 includes:

a configuration information sending module 201, configured to senduplink configuration information for an idle terminal to a terminal;

a measurement information receiving module 202, configured to receivefrom a first base station uplink signal measurement information, whereinthe uplink signal measurement information is obtained by measurement bythe first base station upon receiving an uplink signal carrying aterminal identifier from the terminal based on the uplink signalconfiguration information; and

a mobility configuring module 203, configured to configure mobility forthe terminal based on the uplink signal measurement information, whereinthe configuring mobility is configuring a serving base station for theterminal when a downlink service from the terminal arrives at a networkside, such that the terminal receives paging information from theserving base station.

The uplink signal is one or more of a reference signal, a anchor signaland a random access request signal.

The configuration information sending module 201 includes:

a cycle or event configuring unit, configured to configure a sendingcycle or a type of a trigger event for an uplink signal of the idleterminal; and

a cycle or event sending unit, configured to send sending cycleconfiguration information for the uplink signal of the idle terminal ortrigger event type configuration information for the uplink signal ofthe idle terminal or a report instruction directed to the terminal.

The first network device 200 further includes:

a location and sequence configuring unit, configured to configure aresource location for the idle terminal to send the uplink signal andsequence information contained in the uplink signal; and

a location and sequence sending unit, configured to send resourcelocation configuration information for the idle terminal to send theuplink signal and sequence information configuration informationcontained in the uplink signal for the idle terminal to send the uplinksignal.

The trigger event indicates that a downlink reference signal strength ordownlink reference signal quality of a serving base station or an anchorbase station of the terminal is less than a first predeterminedthreshold, or a time interval of the terminal since previous sending ofthe uplink signal exceeds a second predetermined threshold.

The cycle or event configuring unit is further configured topre-configure a sending cycle of the uplink signal of the terminal basedon a moving speed of the terminal.

The first network device 200 further includes: a first base stationconfiguring module, configured to configure the first base station, suchthat the first base station obtains the uplink signal measurementinformation by measurement upon receiving the uplink signal carrying theterminal identifier from the terminal based on the uplink signalconfiguration information.

The mobility configuring module 203 is configured to select a basestation having a highest signal strength or highest signal quality asthe serving base station of the terminal based on the uplink signalmeasurement information; or

select a base station having a highest signal strength or having signalquality higher than a third predetermined threshold as the serving basestation of the terminal based on the uplink signal measurementinformation; or

select a base station having a signal strength or signal quality higherthan a fourth predetermined threshold and having lowest load as theserving base station of the terminal based on the uplink signalmeasurement information and the load of the first base station.

The mobility configuring module 203 is configured to notify theconfigured serving base station to an active or quasi-active terminal,such that the active or quasi-active terminal establishes a connectionto the serving base station.

The mobility configuring module 203 is configured to:

report an idle terminal identifier list in an anchor base station towhich the first network device 200 belongs to a core network, such thatthe core network determines an anchor base station in which the terminalresides based on the terminal identifier and sends the paginginformation containing the terminal identifier to the determined anchorbase station upon receiving a downlink service request;

determine the serving base station of the terminal based on the uplinksignal measurement information from the first base station;

send a service establish request containing the terminal identifier tothe determined serving base station;

send the paging information to the terminal upon receiving a serviceestablish request response from the determined serving base station; and

send a paging response to the core network, such that the core networksends a downlink service to the determined serving base station, andhence the determined serving base station sends downlink service data tothe terminal.

The mobility configuring module 203 is configured to pre-configure aserving base station set for the terminal based on a moving directionand a moving speed of the terminal.

The first network device 200 further includes: a priority identifyingmodule, configured to identify priorities of various base stations inthe serving base station set, such that the terminal select selects toaccess a serving base station having a highest priority.

Detailed practice and working principle of this embodiment may bereferenced to the description in the first embodiment of the presentapplication, which are thus not described herein any further.

A fifth embodiment of the present application provides a second networkdevice. FIG. 9 is a block diagram of a second network device 300according to the fifth embodiment of the present application. Asillustrated in FIG. 9, the second network device 300 includes:

an uplink signal measuring module 301, configured to receive an uplinksignal carrying a terminal identifier sent from a terminal based onuplink signal configuration information for an idle terminal sent by afirst network device, and obtain uplink signal measurement informationby measurement; and

a measurement information sending module 302, configured to send theuplink signal measurement information to the first network device, suchthat the first network device configures mobility for the terminal basedon the uplink signal measurement information, wherein the configuringmobility is configuring a serving base station for the terminal suchthat the terminal receives paging information at the serving basestation.

The second network device 300 is a device in a first base station. Thefirst network device is a device in an anchor base station or a mobilitymanagement server.

The uplink signal is one or more of a reference signal, an anchor signaland a random access request signal.

The first base station to which the second network device 300 belongs isconfigured by the first network device. The first network deviceconfigures the first base station, such that the first network device inthe first base station receives uplink signal measurement informationobtained by measurement by the terminal after the terminal sends theuplink signal carrying the terminal identifier based on the uplinksignal configuration information.

Detailed practice and working principle of this embodiment may bereferenced to the description in the first embodiment of the presentapplication, which are thus not described herein any further.

A sixth embodiment of the present application provides a terminal. FIG.10 is a block diagram of a terminal 100 according to the sixthembodiment of the present application. As illustrated in FIG. 10, theterminal 100 includes:

an uplink signal sending module 101, configured to send an uplink signalcarrying a terminal identifier based on uplink signal configurationinformation for an idle terminal sent by a first network device, suchthat a first base station obtains uplink signal measurement informationby measurement upon receiving the uplink signal, and the first networkdevice receives the uplink signal measurement information from the firstbase station and configures mobility for the terminal based on theuplink measurement information, wherein the configuring mobility isconfiguring a serving base station for the terminal when a downlinkservice arrives at a network side, such that the terminal receivespaging information at the serving base station.

The first network device is a device in an anchor base station or amobility management server.

The uplink signal is one or more of a reference signal, an anchor signaland a random access request signal.

Detailed practice and working principle of this embodiment may bereferenced to the description in the first embodiment of the presentapplication, which are thus not described herein any further.

FIG. 11 is a block diagram of a first network device 400 according to aseventh embodiment of the present application. As illustrated in FIG.11, the first network device 400 according to the seventh embodiment ofthe present application includes: at least one processor 410, whereinFIG. 11 uses one processor 410 as an example; and a memory 420communicably connected to the at least one processor 410. The memorystores instructions that are executable by the at least one processor.The instructions, which when being executed by the at least oneprocessor, cause the at least one processor to perform the terminalmobility management method applicable to the first network device 400according to the method embodiments.

The at least one processor 410 and the memory 420 may be connected via abus or in another manner, and FIG. 11 uses connection via the bus as anexample.

The memory 420, as a non-volatile computer readable storage medium, maybe configured to store non-volatile software programs, non-volatilecomputer executable programs and modules, for example, the programinstructions/modules corresponding to the terminal mobility managementmethod applicable to the first network device 400 according to theembodiments of the present application. The non-volatile softwareprograms, instructions and modules stored in the memory 420, when beingexecuted, cause the at least one processor 410 to perform variousfunction applications and data processing of the first network device400, that is, performing the terminal mobility management methodapplicable to the first network device 400 according to the above methodembodiments.

The memory 420 may include a program memory area and data memory area,wherein the program memory area may store operation systems andapplication programs needed by at least function; and the data memoryarea may store data created according to the usage of the first networkdevice 400. In addition, the memory 420 may include a high speed randomaccess memory, or include a non-volatile memory, for example, at leastone disk storage device, a flash memory device, or another non-volatilesolid storage device. In some embodiments, the memory 420 optionallyincludes the memory remotely arranged relative to the processor 410, andsuch remote memory may be connected to the first network device 400 overa network. Examples of the above network include, but not limited to,the Internet, Intranet, local area network, mobile communication networkand a combination thereof.

One or more modules are stored in the memory 420, and when beingexecuted by the at least one processor 410, perform the terminalmobility management method applicable to the first network device 400according to any one of the above method embodiments.

The product may perform the method according to the embodiments of thepresent application, has corresponding function modules for performingthe method, and achieves the corresponding beneficial effects. Fortechnical details that are not illustrated in detail in this embodiment,reference may be made to the description of the methods according to theembodiments of the present application.

FIG. 12 is a block diagram of a second network device 500 according toan eighth embodiment of the present application. As illustrated in FIG.12, the second network device 500 according to the eighth embodiment ofthe present application includes: at least one processor 510, whereinFIG. 12 uses one processor 510 as an example; and a memory 520communicably connected to the at least one processor 510. The memorystores instructions that are executable by the at least one processor.The instructions, which when being executed by the at least oneprocessor, cause the at least one processor to perform the terminalmobility management method applicable to the second network device 500according to the method embodiments.

The at least one processor 510 and the memory 520 may be connected via abus or in another manner, and FIG. 12 uses connection via the bus as anexample.

The memory 520, as a non-volatile computer readable storage medium, maybe configured to store non-volatile software programs, non-volatilecomputer executable programs and modules, for example, the programinstructions/modules corresponding to the terminal mobility managementmethod applicable to the second network device 500 according to theembodiments of the present application. The non-volatile softwareprograms, instructions and modules stored in the memory 520, when beingexecuted, cause the at least one processor 510 to perform variousfunction applications and data processing of the second network device500, that is, performing the terminal mobility management methodapplicable to the second network device 500 according to the abovemethod embodiments.

The memory 520 may include a program memory area and data memory area,wherein the program memory area may store operation systems andapplication programs needed by at least function; and the data memoryarea may store data created according to the usage of the second networkdevice 500. In addition, the memory 520 may include a high speed randomaccess memory, or include a non-volatile memory, for example, at leastone disk storage device, a flash memory device, or another non-volatilesolid storage device. In some embodiments, the memory 520 optionallyincludes the memory remotely arranged relative to the processor 510, andsuch remote memory may be connected to the second network device 500over a network. Examples of the above network include, but not limitedto, the Internet, Intranet, local area network, mobile communicationnetwork and a combination thereof.

One or more modules are stored in the memory 520, and when beingexecuted by the at least one processor 510, perform the terminalmobility management method applicable to the second network device 500according to any one of the above method embodiments.

The product may perform the method according to the embodiments of thepresent application, has corresponding function modules for performingthe method, and achieves the corresponding beneficial effects. Fortechnical details that are not illustrated in detail in this embodiment,reference may be made to the description of the methods according to theembodiments of the present application.

FIG. 13 is a block diagram of a terminal 600 according to a ninthembodiment of the present application. As illustrated in FIG. 13, theterminal 600 according to the ninth embodiment of the presentapplication includes: at least one processor 610, wherein FIG. 13 usesone processor 610 as an example; and a memory 620 communicably connectedto the at least one processor 610. The memory stores instructions thatare executable by the at least one processor. The instructions, whichwhen being executed by the at least one processor, cause the at leastone processor to perform the terminal mobility management methodapplicable to the terminal 600 according to the method embodiments.

The at least one processor 610 and the memory 620 may be connected via abus or in another manner, and FIG. 13 uses connection via the bus as anexample.

The memory 620, as a non-volatile computer readable storage medium, maybe configured to store non-volatile software programs, non-volatilecomputer executable programs and modules, for example, the programinstructions/modules corresponding to the terminal mobility managementmethod applicable to the terminal 600 according to the embodiments ofthe present application. The non-volatile software programs,instructions and modules stored in the memory 620, when being executed,cause the at least one processor 610 to perform various functionapplications and data processing of the terminal 600, that is,performing the terminal mobility management method applicable to theterminal 600 according to the above method embodiments.

The memory 620 may include a program memory area and data memory area,wherein the program memory area may store operation systems andapplication programs needed by at least one function; and the datamemory area may store data created according to the use of the terminal600. In addition, the memory 620 may include a high speed random accessmemory, or include a non-volatile memory, for example, at least one diskstorage device, a flash memory device, or another non-volatile solidstorage device. In some embodiments, the memory 620 optionally includesmemories remotely configured relative to the processor 610. Thesememories may be connected to the terminal 600 over a network. Examplesof the above network include, but not limited to, the Internet,Intranet, local area network, mobile communication network and acombination thereof.

One or more modules are stored in the memory 620, and when beingexecuted by the at least one processor 610, perform the terminalmobility management method applicable to the terminal 600 according toany one of the above method embodiments.

The product may perform the method according to the embodiments of thepresent application, has corresponding function modules for performingthe method, and achieves the corresponding beneficial effects. Fortechnical details that are not illustrated in detail in this embodiment,reference may be made to the description of the methods according to theembodiments of the present application.

A tenth embodiment of the present application provides a non-volatilecomputer-readable storage medium. The computer-readable storage mediumstores computer-executable instructions, which, when being executed byat least one processor, for example, the processor 410 as illustrated inFIG. 11, may cause the at least one processor to perform the terminalmobility management method applicable to the first network deviceaccording to any of the above method embodiments.

An eleventh embodiment of the present application provides anon-volatile computer-readable storage medium. The computer-readablestorage medium stores computer-executable instructions, which, whenbeing executed by at least one processor, for example, the processor 510as illustrated in FIG. 12, may cause the at least one processor toperform the terminal mobility management method applicable to the secondnetwork device according to any of the above method embodiments.

A twelfth embodiment of the present application provides a non-volatilecomputer-readable storage medium. The computer-readable storage mediumstores computer-executable instructions, which, when being executed byat least one processor, for example, the processor 610 as illustrated inFIG. 13, may cause the at least one processor to perform the terminalmobility management method applicable to the terminal according to anyof the above method embodiments.

The above described apparatus embodiments are merely for illustrationpurpose only. The units which are described as separate components maybe physically separated or may be not physically separated, and thecomponents which are illustrated as units may be or may not be physicalunits, that is, the components may be located in the same position ormay be distributed into a plurality of network units. A part or all ofthe modules may be selected according to the actual needs to achieve theobjectives of the technical solutions of the embodiments.

According to the above embodiments of the present application, a personskilled in the art may clearly understand that the embodiments of thepresent application may be implemented by means of hardware or by meansof software plus a necessary general hardware platform. Persons ofordinary skill in the art may understand that all or part of the stepsof the methods in the embodiments may be implemented by a programinstructing relevant hardware. The program may be stored in a computerreadable storage medium and may be executed by at least one processor.When the program runs, the steps of the methods in the embodiments areperformed. The storage medium may be any medium capable of storingprogram codes, such as read-only memory (ROM), a random access memory(RAM), a magnetic disk, or a compact disc-read only memory (CD-ROM).

Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are merely usedto illustrate the technical solutions of the present application ratherthan limiting the technical solutions of the present application. Underthe concept of the present application, the technical features of theabove embodiments or other different embodiments may be combined, thesteps therein may be performed in any sequence, and various variationsmay be derived in different aspects of the present application, whichare not detailed herein for brevity of description. Although the presentapplication is described in detail with reference to the aboveembodiments, persons of ordinary skill in the art should understand thatthey may still make modifications to the technical solutions describedin the above embodiments, or make equivalent replacements to some of thetechnical features; however, such modifications or replacements do notcause the essence of the corresponding technical solutions to departfrom the spirit and scope of the technical solutions of the embodimentsof the present application.

What is claimed is:
 1. A terminal mobility management method,comprising: sending, by a first network device, uplink signalconfiguration information for an idle terminal to a terminal; receiving,by the first network device, uplink signal measurement information sentby a first base station, wherein the uplink signal measurementinformation is obtained by measurement by the first base station uponreceiving an uplink signal carrying a terminal identifier sent by theterminal based on the uplink signal configuration information; andconfiguring, by the first network device, mobility for the terminalbased on the uplink signal measurement information, wherein theconfiguring mobility is configuring a serving base station for theterminal when a downlink service from the terminal arrives at a networkside, such that the terminal receives paging information from theserving base station.
 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein theuplink signal is one or more of a reference signal, an anchor signal anda random access request signal.
 3. The method according to claim 1,wherein the sending, by a first network device, uplink signalconfiguration information for an idle terminal to a terminal comprises:configuring, by the first network device, a sending cycle or a type of atrigger event for an uplink signal of the idle terminal; and sending, bythe first network device, sending cycle configuration information forthe uplink signal of the idle terminal or trigger event typeconfiguration information for the uplink signal of the idle terminal ora report instruction directed to the terminal.
 4. The method accordingto claim 3, further comprising: configuring, by first the networkdevice, a resource location for the idle terminal to send the uplinksignal and sequence information contained in the uplink signal; andsending, by the first network device, resource location configurationinformation for the idle terminal to send the uplink signal and sequenceinformation configuration information contained in the uplink signal forthe idle terminal to send the uplink signal.
 5. The method according toclaim 3, wherein the trigger event indicates that a downlink referencesignal strength or downlink reference signal quality of a serving basestation or an anchor base station of the terminal is less than a firstpredetermined threshold, or a time interval of the terminal sinceprevious sending of the uplink signal exceeds a second predeterminedthreshold.
 6. The method according to claim 3, further comprising:pre-configuring, by the first network device, a sending cycle of theuplink signal of the terminal based on a moving speed of the terminal.7. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: configuring, bythe first network device, the first base station, such that the firstbase station obtains the uplink signal measurement information bymeasurement upon receiving the uplink signal carrying the terminalidentifier from the terminal based on the uplink signal configurationinformation.
 8. The method according to claim 1, wherein theconfiguring, by the first network device, mobility for the terminalbased on the uplink signal measurement information comprises: selecting,by the first network device, a base station having a highest signalstrength or highest signal quality as the serving base station of theterminal based on the uplink signal measurement information; orselecting, by the first network device, a base station having a highestsignal strength or having signal quality higher than a thirdpredetermined threshold as the serving base station of the terminalbased on the uplink signal measurement information; or selecting, by thefirst network device, a base station having a signal strength or signalquality higher than a fourth predetermined threshold and having lowestload as the serving base station of the terminal based on the uplinksignal measurement information and the load of the first base station.9. The method according to claim 1, wherein the configuring, by thefirst network device, mobility for the terminal based on the uplinksignal measurement information comprises: notifying, by the firstnetwork device, the configured serving base station to an active orquasi-active terminal, such that the active or quasi-active terminalestablishes a connection to the serving base station.
 10. The methodaccording to claim 1, wherein the configuring, by the first networkdevice, mobility for the terminal based on the uplink signal measurementinformation comprises: reporting, by the first network device, an idleterminal identifier list in an anchor base station to which the firstnetwork device belongs to a core network, such that the core networkdetermines an anchor base station in which the terminal resides based onthe terminal identifier and sends the paging information containing theterminal identifier to the determined anchor base station upon receivinga downlink service request; determining, by the first network device,the serving base station of the terminal based on the uplink signalmeasurement information from the first base station; sending, by thefirst network device, a service establish request containing theterminal identifier to the determined serving base station; sending, bythe first network device, the paging information to the terminal uponreceiving a service establish request response from the determinedserving base station; and sending, by the first network device, a pagingresponse to the core network, such that the core network sends adownlink service to the determined serving base station, and hence thedetermined serving base station sends downlink service data to theterminal.
 11. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:pre-configuring, by the first network device, a serving base station setfor the terminal based on a moving direction and a moving speed of theterminal.
 12. The method according to claim 11, further comprising:identifying, by the first network device, priorities of various basestations in the serving base station set, such that the terminal selectsto access a serving base station having a highest priority.
 13. Themethod according to claim 1, wherein the first network device is adevice in an anchor base station or a mobility management server.
 14. Aterminal mobility management method, comprising: receiving, by a secondnetwork device, an uplink signal carrying a terminal identifier sentfrom a terminal based on uplink signal configuration information for anidle terminal sent by a first network device; obtaining, by a secondnetwork device, uplink signal measurement information by measurement;and sending, by the second network device, the uplink signal measurementinformation to the first network device, such that the first networkdevice configures mobility for the terminal based on the uplink signalmeasurement information, wherein the configuring mobility is configuringa serving base station for the terminal such that the terminal receivespaging information at the serving base station.
 15. The method accordingto claim 14, wherein the uplink signal is one or more of a referencesignal, an anchor signal and a random access request signal.
 16. Themethod according to claim 14, wherein the second network device is adevice in a first base station being configured by the first networkdevice, and wherein the first network device configures the first basestation, such that the first network device in the first base stationobtains uplink signal measurement information by measurement uponreceiving an uplink signal carrying a terminal identifier sent by theterminal based on the uplink signal configuration information.
 17. Afirst network device, comprising: at least one processor; and a memorycommunicably connected to the at least one processor; wherein the memorystores instructions executable by the at least one processor, wherein,the instructions, when being executed by the at least one processor,cause the at least one processor to perform the steps of: sending uplinksignal configuration information for an idle terminal to a terminal;receiving uplink signal measurement information sent by a first basestation, wherein the uplink signal measurement information is obtainedby measurement by the first base station upon receiving an uplink signalcarrying a terminal identifier sent by the terminal based on the uplinksignal configuration information; and configuring mobility for theterminal based on the uplink signal measurement information, wherein theconfiguring mobility is configuring a serving base station for theterminal when a downlink service from the terminal arrives at a networkside, such that the terminal receives paging information from theserving base station.
 18. The first network device according to claim17, wherein the uplink signal is one or more of a reference signal, ananchor signal and a random access request signal.
 19. The first networkdevice according to claim 17, wherein the sending uplink signalconfiguration information for an idle terminal to a terminal comprises:configuring a sending cycle or a type of a trigger event for an uplinksignal of the idle terminal; and sending sending cycle configurationinformation for the uplink signal of the idle terminal or trigger eventtype configuration information for the uplink signal of the idleterminal or a report instruction directed to the terminal.
 20. The firstnetwork device according to claim 17, wherein the instructions, whenbeing executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least oneprocessor to perform the steps of: configuring a resource location forthe idle terminal to send the uplink signal and sequence informationcontained in the uplink signal; and sending resource locationconfiguration information for the idle terminal to send the uplinksignal and sequence information configuration information contained inthe uplink signal for the idle terminal to send the uplink signal.